The impact of social support on quality of life among older adults in times of COVID-19 pandemic in Dongguan, China: a cross-sectional study

The study examined the impact of social support (SS) on quality of life (QoL) among older adults and whether these impacts varied across different levels of QoL during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cluster-random-sampling survey was adopted within two towns in Dongguan, China for two months during the epidemic lockdown. Demographic characteristics, SS and QoL were measured. The number of types of services provided by the community, and the frequency and benefits of participation in community activities were used to assess formal social support (FSS), and the Social Support Appraisals (SS-A) scale for informal social support (ISS). The 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) was used to measure QoL. Multiple quantile regression adjusting for demographic characteristics variables was employed to explore the impact of SS on QoL among older adults. One thousand one hundred thirty older adults (≥ 60 years) were included. The mean age was 78.97 years (± 8.99), over half of (53.45%) received one or two types of community-provided services. 49.29% participated in community activities occasionally. 60.80% perceived these activities as beneficial to their health. In terms of ISS, the mean (SD) scores for social support from family, friends, and others were 23.68 (3.27), 20.14 (2.81), and 15.27 (1.72). The mean PCS-T and MCS-T scores were 50.00 (SD: 6.87) and 50.00 (SD: 9.04), respectively. When controlling for confounders, the results showed that “often” participating in community activities demonstrated a significant positive association with PCS-T, with the associated attenuation at higher quartiles. SS from others exhibited a significant negative correlation only at the lowest quartile of the PCS-T(β= -0.61, p = 0.005). “Always” participating in community activities demonstrated a significant negative association with MCS-T at the highest quantile. SS from family exhibited a significant positive association with MCS-T at both the 5th (β = 0.77, p < 0.001) and 95th (β = 0.8, p < 0.001) quantiles, with SS from others showing a positive association specifically at the highest quantile (β = 0.51, p = 0.022). Formal community-based social support called for greater attention to the needs of older adults with a poorer quality of life, expanding its coverage, and enhancing the effectiveness of their participation in community activities. Fostering a harmonious and caring social and community environment proved to be a pathway to improving the quality of life for older adults during the pandemic.